Design Economy 2018 report

Design Council UK is excited to publish their flagship state of design report, Design Economy 2018. The report builds from the 2015 report and looks in-depth at the value and importance of design to the UK economy.

The research highlights that design continues to grow at pace. It generated £85.2 billion in GVA, which is about 73% of the GVA of the financial and insurance industry. Around 1.69 million people are employed in design economy, a 52% growth since 2009. The number of design firms has grown by 63% since 2010 and design is making an important contribution to UK innovation and productivity.

The research presents a positive picture of design in the UK. The research also highlights a number of issues that need to be tackled if we are to continue to be a world leader in design (with China, the UAE and Saudi Arabia rapidly catching up). We have to take action to address design’s diversity problem, it is still 78% male. It is also regionally imbalanced with London and the South East, alongside larger more successful businesses continuing to benefit most from the design economy. This uneven distribution of design risks a growing divide between those businesses, places and people that have access to design and those that do not.